WRVO-FM: chemistryhttp://www.npr.org
Assorted stories from WRVO-FMenCopyright 2014 NPR - For Personal Use OnlyNPR API RSS Generator 0.94Mon, 17 Dec 2012 14:18:35 -0500http://media.npr.org/images/stations/logos/wrvo_fm.gifWRVO-FM: chemistryhttp://www.npr.org
Largest donation in SUNY Oswego history to name science building<p>SUNY Oswego has received the largest donation in its 150 year history. The gift comes from a couple who have already dedicated much of their life's work to the university.<!--break--></p><p>Barbara Shineman was a professor of education at SUNY Oswego for many years. Her late husband, Dick Shineman, was on the university’s faculty beginning in 1962, and was the founding chairman of the chemistry department. The five million dollar gift - donated in part from Barbara Shineman and partly from the foundation her husband created before he died - will go to the new science building on campus.</p><p>The SUNY Board of Trustees approved the naming of the Richard S. Shineman Center for Science, Engineering and Innovation. The building is scheduled to open in fall of 2013.</p><p>Barbara says her husband Dick was a modest person and would not have agreed to have a building named after him while he was alive.</p><p>“He didn't feel he needed to have his name on anything,” said Shineman. “He would have thought of a lot of other people who were deserving because he was really quite a humble person.”</p><p>But she says he would be pleased that the money is going to enhance the study of sciences at SUNY Oswego.</p><p>“It encompasses a lot of departments that relate to science, all under one roof. It will be very meaningful for the future of the college and for students who come here,” Shineman said.</p><p>The donation will also go toward science programs and research, educational and cultural opportunities, and an endowed chair in chemistry.</p><p>SUNY Oswego President Deborah Stanley says the university will determine a particular discipline within chemistry that will be supported by the gift. And because endowed chairs generally last in perpetuity, Stanley hopes it will help attract other scientific research to the university as well.</p><p>“They help establish a particular hallmark for a program and that will do that for chemistry. Hopefully we will bring in a recognized and renowned scholar, someone who has established a research basis and can bring it to Oswego to help our students go forward,” said Stanley. “They will see life in a different way and see chemistry in a different way, having that person here.”</p><p>And according to Barbara Shineman, that’s just what her husband would have wanted for the school that became home to both of them over the years. Dick, she said, had a “really deep feeling for the college, education; for the community and the people.”</p><p>So much so that, she said, giving this historic gift just seemed like a “natural thing.”</p>Mon, 17 Dec 2012 14:18:35 -0500http://www.wrvo.fm/post/largest-donation-suny-oswego-history-name-science-building
http://www.wrvo.fm/post/largest-donation-suny-oswego-history-name-science-building<p>SUNY Oswego has received the largest donation in its 150 year history. The gift comes from a couple who have already dedicated much of their life's work to the university.<!--break--></p><p>Barbara Shineman was a professor of education at SUNY Oswego for many years. Her late husband, Dick Shineman, was on the university’s faculty beginning in 1962, and was the founding chairman of the chemistry department. The five million dollar gift - donated in part from Barbara Shineman and partly from the foundation her husband created before he died - will go to the new science building on campus.</p><p>The SUNY Board of Trustees approved the naming of the Richard S. Shineman Center for Science, Engineering and Innovation. The building is scheduled to open in fall of 2013.</p><p>Barbara says her husband Dick was a modest person and would not have agreed to have a building named after him while he was alive.</p><p>“He didn't feel he needed to have his name on anything,” said Shineman. “He would have thought of a lot of other people who were deserving because he was really quite a humble person.”</p><p>But she says he would be pleased that the money is going to enhance the study of sciences at SUNY Oswego.</p><p>“It encompasses a lot of departments that relate to science, all under one roof. It will be very meaningful for the future of the college and for students who come here,” Shineman said.</p><p>The donation will also go toward science programs and research, educational and cultural opportunities, and an endowed chair in chemistry.</p><p>SUNY Oswego President Deborah Stanley says the university will determine a particular discipline within chemistry that will be supported by the gift. And because endowed chairs generally last in perpetuity, Stanley hopes it will help attract other scientific research to the university as well.</p><p>“They help establish a particular hallmark for a program and that will do that for chemistry. Hopefully we will bring in a recognized and renowned scholar, someone who has established a research basis and can bring it to Oswego to help our students go forward,” said Stanley. “They will see life in a different way and see chemistry in a different way, having that person here.”</p><p>And according to Barbara Shineman, that’s just what her husband would have wanted for the school that became home to both of them over the years. Dick, she said, had a “really deep feeling for the college, education; for the community and the people.”</p><p>So much so that, she said, giving this historic gift just seemed like a “natural thing.”</p>84no

SUNY Oswego has received the largest donation in its 150 year history. The gift comes from a couple who have already dedicated much of their life's work to the university.

Barbara Shineman was a professor of education at SUNY Oswego for many years. Her late husband, Dick Shineman, was on the university’s faculty beginning in 1962, and was the founding chairman of the chemistry department. The five million dollar gift - donated in part from Barbara Shineman and partly from the foundation her husband created before he died - will go to the new science building on campus.

The SUNY Board of Trustees approved the naming of the Richard S. Shineman Center for Science, Engineering and Innovation. The building is scheduled to open in fall of 2013.

Barbara says her husband Dick was a modest person and would not have agreed to have a building named after him while he was alive.

“He didn't feel he needed to have his name on anything,” said Shineman. “He would have thought of a lot of other people who were deserving because he was really quite a humble person.”

But she says he would be pleased that the money is going to enhance the study of sciences at SUNY Oswego.

“It encompasses a lot of departments that relate to science, all under one roof. It will be very meaningful for the future of the college and for students who come here,” Shineman said.

The donation will also go toward science programs and research, educational and cultural opportunities, and an endowed chair in chemistry.

SUNY Oswego President Deborah Stanley says the university will determine a particular discipline within chemistry that will be supported by the gift. And because endowed chairs generally last in perpetuity, Stanley hopes it will help attract other scientific research to the university as well.

“They help establish a particular hallmark for a program and that will do that for chemistry. Hopefully we will bring in a recognized and renowned scholar, someone who has established a research basis and can bring it to Oswego to help our students go forward,” said Stanley. “They will see life in a different way and see chemistry in a different way, having that person here.”

And according to Barbara Shineman, that’s just what her husband would have wanted for the school that became home to both of them over the years. Dick, she said, had a “really deep feeling for the college, education; for the community and the people.”

So much so that, she said, giving this historic gift just seemed like a “natural thing.”

]]>SU scientists say fireflies could be a light source<p>There&#39;s more to fireflies than a backyard light show.&nbsp; Scientists at Syracuse University are working on a project that ultimately would put the insect&#39;s luminescense to use.</p><p><!--break--><br />Lighting up a television screen or a string of Christmas lights are just some&nbsp; of the possibilities that could spring out of a project at SU&#39;s College of Arts and Sciences. &nbsp;<br /><br />In a fourth floor lab, chemistry professor Matthew Maye leads students in using nano science to tap the power of luciferase, the enzyme in fireflies that creates light.<br /><br />"In our particular project we&#39;ve been able to attach that luciferase to some of our nano-materials," said Maye<br /><br />Maye says it all comes down to the structure of these tiny nano-rod building blocks, something they&#39;ve been working on the past two years.<br /><br />"You can think of these little things as pieces of architecture almost.&nbsp; We&#39;ve designed all the dimensions, the length, the width.&nbsp; We&#39;ve designed the composition inside the structure of these little rods all to promote the energy transfer to come from the luciferase firefly protein," said Maye.<br /><br />These nano-rods are smaller than a computer chip.<br /><br />"For computer chips, the smallest dimension might be 20 or 30 nanometers right now. But using chemistry we&#39;re able to synthesize from molecules into slightly larger structures that are less than ten nanometers in dimension," said Maye.<br /><br />The beauty of it all is that it requires no outside power source.<br /><br />"We&#39;re converting a chemical energy to light, so we don&#39;t need a battery or a laser to excite the system," said Maye. "We just need a little of the firefly fuel, it reacts with the protein which transfers its energy to a rod and we get these nice red or orange colors."<br /><br />Maye sees a commercial future springing from their work.<br /><br />"Everything is moving towards LEDs and thin displays.&nbsp; But LEDs are still limited as to their light output.&nbsp; So some of our nano-rod materials are extremely bright, even better than LEDs," said Maye.&nbsp; "And you can think about if there is some way down the road to light up a TV without electricity, or to light up some type of diode or different color panel without electricity. It&#39;s quite unique."<br /><br />It has certainly changed the way Maye looks at the lightning bugs in his backyard. "I&#39;ve actually never had a fascination with fireflies before, but now I definitely appreciate them a little more."</p>Sun, 15 Jul 2012 07:01:00 -0400http://www.wrvo.fm/post/su-scientists-say-fireflies-could-be-light-source
http://www.wrvo.fm/post/su-scientists-say-fireflies-could-be-light-source<p>There&#39;s more to fireflies than a backyard light show.&nbsp; Scientists at Syracuse University are working on a project that ultimately would put the insect&#39;s luminescense to use.</p><p><!--break--><br />Lighting up a television screen or a string of Christmas lights are just some&nbsp; of the possibilities that could spring out of a project at SU&#39;s College of Arts and Sciences. &nbsp;<br /><br />In a fourth floor lab, chemistry professor Matthew Maye leads students in using nano science to tap the power of luciferase, the enzyme in fireflies that creates light.<br /><br />"In our particular project we&#39;ve been able to attach that luciferase to some of our nano-materials," said Maye<br /><br />Maye says it all comes down to the structure of these tiny nano-rod building blocks, something they&#39;ve been working on the past two years.<br /><br />"You can think of these little things as pieces of architecture almost.&nbsp; We&#39;ve designed all the dimensions, the length, the width.&nbsp; We&#39;ve designed the composition inside the structure of these little rods all to promote the energy transfer to come from the luciferase firefly protein," said Maye.<br /><br />These nano-rods are smaller than a computer chip.<br /><br />"For computer chips, the smallest dimension might be 20 or 30 nanometers right now. But using chemistry we&#39;re able to synthesize from molecules into slightly larger structures that are less than ten nanometers in dimension," said Maye.<br /><br />The beauty of it all is that it requires no outside power source.<br /><br />"We&#39;re converting a chemical energy to light, so we don&#39;t need a battery or a laser to excite the system," said Maye. "We just need a little of the firefly fuel, it reacts with the protein which transfers its energy to a rod and we get these nice red or orange colors."<br /><br />Maye sees a commercial future springing from their work.<br /><br />"Everything is moving towards LEDs and thin displays.&nbsp; But LEDs are still limited as to their light output.&nbsp; So some of our nano-rod materials are extremely bright, even better than LEDs," said Maye.&nbsp; "And you can think about if there is some way down the road to light up a TV without electricity, or to light up some type of diode or different color panel without electricity. It&#39;s quite unique."<br /><br />It has certainly changed the way Maye looks at the lightning bugs in his backyard. "I&#39;ve actually never had a fascination with fireflies before, but now I definitely appreciate them a little more."</p>118no

There's more to fireflies than a backyard light show. Scientists at Syracuse University are working on a project that ultimately would put the insect's luminescense to use.

Lighting up a television screen or a string of Christmas lights are just some of the possibilities that could spring out of a project at SU's College of Arts and Sciences.

In a fourth floor lab, chemistry professor Matthew Maye leads students in using nano science to tap the power of luciferase, the enzyme in fireflies that creates light.

"In our particular project we've been able to attach that luciferase to some of our nano-materials," said Maye

Maye says it all comes down to the structure of these tiny nano-rod building blocks, something they've been working on the past two years.

"You can think of these little things as pieces of architecture almost. We've designed all the dimensions, the length, the width. We've designed the composition inside the structure of these little rods all to promote the energy transfer to come from the luciferase firefly protein," said Maye.

These nano-rods are smaller than a computer chip.

"For computer chips, the smallest dimension might be 20 or 30 nanometers right now. But using chemistry we're able to synthesize from molecules into slightly larger structures that are less than ten nanometers in dimension," said Maye.

The beauty of it all is that it requires no outside power source.

"We're converting a chemical energy to light, so we don't need a battery or a laser to excite the system," said Maye. "We just need a little of the firefly fuel, it reacts with the protein which transfers its energy to a rod and we get these nice red or orange colors."

Maye sees a commercial future springing from their work.

"Everything is moving towards LEDs and thin displays. But LEDs are still limited as to their light output. So some of our nano-rod materials are extremely bright, even better than LEDs," said Maye. "And you can think about if there is some way down the road to light up a TV without electricity, or to light up some type of diode or different color panel without electricity. It's quite unique."

It has certainly changed the way Maye looks at the lightning bugs in his backyard. "I've actually never had a fascination with fireflies before, but now I definitely appreciate them a little more."